Lease ready for West Easton DUI center

Northampton County Council will review terms before voting on it next month.

January 18, 2012|By Adam Clark, Of The Morning Call

Northampton County Executive John Stoffa and developer Abe Atiyeh have agreed on a lease for a proposed DUI treatment and work-release facility in West Easton.

County Council's finance committee reviewed the deal Wednesday and decided to send it to the full council for a vote. The lease will be introduced at Thursday night's meeting and can be voted on Feb. 2.

Stoffa and Atiyeh negotiated for months before arriving at the 10-year deal, which would have the county pay Atiyeh $447,125 for the first year, based on a rate of $18.25 per square foot.

That rate was determined by the average of two appraisals — $16.25 per square foot — plus an extra charge reimbursing Atiyeh for West Easton's $50-a-head residency fee. Northampton County would also pay real estate taxes and all utility fees for the 24,500-square-foot facility at Main and East streets.

Rent increases each year would be based on the Consumer Price Index for the Philadelphia metropolitan area.

Northampton has the option of a five-year extension at the end of the 10-year term. After that, it could extend the lease for five more years. The county would also have the right of first refusal if Atiyeh wants to sell the treatment center.

A work-release facility for minimum security inmates has been on the county's wish list for about five years. It would help alleviate crowding in the county jail, and Stoffa hopes the treatment center will reduce recidivism.

The 100-bed facility can also hold people jailed for not paying child or spousal support.

If council approves the lease, the facility will bolster finances in West Easton, a town 10 blocks long and four blocks wide with little room for economic development.

But County Councilman Thomas Dietrich said West Easton's ability to raise the residency fee is a variable the county can't control, and if fees surpass more than $50,000 in a year, the county would be on the hook for the overrun, according to the lease.

County solicitor Karl Longenbach agreed the county is powerless to stop West Easton from raising the fee. He said it's hoped the borough would do so incrementally.

The lease would begin March 1 or 30 days after a certificate of occupancy is obtained. The interior of the building likely would not be ready for a March 1 opening, Longenbach said.

Stoffa budgeted $1.8 million for rent and the first year of operation.

Separately, the finance committee on Wednesday recommended an ordinance that would require any surplus from Gracedale, the county-owned nursing home, to be returned to the facility for improvements.

Revenue from Gracedale has been used to fund other aspects of the county's budget. When the nursing home operates at a deficit, the county uses money from its general fund to keep it afloat.

Before the finance committee met, the personnel committee recommended approving a new collective bargaining agreement with the county's social services workers. The union represents 180 employees and the contract calls for annual raises along with increased employee health care contributions.

The contract includes a 2.75 percent step increase this year and 2.25 percent cost-of-living adjustments in 2013 and 2014. With the health care contribution included, the net raises would be 1.25 percent this year and for 2013 and 1.75 percent for 2014.